


A Crack in the Glass

by willowandfog



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Mystery, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:47:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24771109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/willowandfog/pseuds/willowandfog
Summary: Kagome’s being watched, followed, but has no idea who it is or why they are doing it. When Kagome hires the help of a private investigator things take a dangerous turn. Uncovering secrets that Kagome didn't even know she had.
Relationships: Higurashi Kagome/InuYasha
Comments: 22
Kudos: 54





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

Kagome sat at her office desk, feeling anxious in her small cubicle. She fidgeted with the pen in her hand, tapping it nervously on her keyboard. Her chocolate eyes trying to focus on the computer screen before her. She’d received another anonymous creepy email. All the email contained was a list, of every single thing she had done the previous day with a timestamp of the moment she had done said item. 

She had tried unsuccessfully to trace the IP address, whoever was sending the emails knew how to cover their tracks. She’d asked some of her fellow coders to try to trace the address, knowing it was pointless since she was the best coder in the building. But it gave her a little peace of mind knowing that someone else had given it a shot. 

Kagome glanced through the list in the email once more, trying to find any flaw. It contained everything she’d done, including every bathroom break, every snack, and even what time she’d shut down her computer and went to brush her teeth before bed last night. She let out an overwhelmed sigh, tightly closing her eyes. Someone was watching her, closely. And the only way they could even know what she did in her apartment was if they watched her through a window or had planted cameras. 

Opening her eyes she reached forward and turned off the monitor, deciding she would take an early lunch and walk the couple blocks to her favorite coffee shop. She stood from her black swivel chair, grabbed her forest green peacoat off the back and pulled it on. Grabbing her purse off the small hook on her cubicle wall, she made her way to the elevator. 

Ten minutes later Kagome was stepping into Caffe Umbria, trying to shake the cold of the chilly fall Chicago winds from her bones. She breathed in deeply, briefly closing her eyes, taking in the wonderful aroma of freshly ground coffee.  _ Now this is heaven, so soothing.  _

When her eyes opened, they fell onto a silver-haired hanyou sitting at a small round table in the corner. The puppy ears atop his head flickering slightly at each clank of dishes. His nose seemed to twitch as he sniffed the air slightly, it was almost unnoticeable. A moment later ochre colored eyes met her chocolate ones, and her heart raced. 

Shaking her head she turned her gaze away, stepping forward to the back of the line. Her thoughts were running.  _ Who could possibly be watching me? And why?! I’m practically a nobody. More importantly how are they watching me?  _

“The usual Kagome?”

Kagome was shaken from her thoughts at hearing her name. Realizing she was at the front of the line she flushed. “I’m sorry Kat, I was lost in my thoughts I guess.” She supplied Kat with a small smile, looking over her. Her black hair was cut into a short bob, her blue eyes showing light concern, and her black apron with adjustable yellow straps was tied tight around her waist to protect her clothes from coffee splatter. “I like your new haircut. Yeah I’ll just take my usu-”

“Kat, could you get me a refill before I head out?” Kagome was interrupted by the silver-haired hanyou, who was now leaning on the counter handing his disposable cup to Kat. 

“Well that was rude.” When he looked at her she continued. “You’re cutting in front of all these people.” Kagome gestured to the line behind her.

The man raised a brow at her and cocked a smile. “It’ll just be a second.” He spoke as he reached his hand to take the cup back from Kat, his eyes never leaving Kagome. The man straightened, he brushed past her and left.

Kagome sighed and rolled her eyes, looking at Kat. “The usual please.” As the girl rang up her order Kagome reached into her purse to pull out her wallet. Instead of her wallet her hand pulled out a business card. She looked at it in confusion. 

_ Where did this come from? _ She read the card,  _ Inuyasha Takahashi, Private Investigator/Bodyguard Services. _ She turned quickly to look towards the door, but the man was gone.  _ Was this him? _

Kagome left the shop carrying her Nocciola Freddo and a small baggy containing a croissant in one hand, the business card in the other. She sipped her hazelnut coffee, studying the card.  _ Should I hire an investigator? Should I trust this guy? He could be the one watching me for all I know. How would he even know I needed help anyways?  _ She sighed, aggressively shoving the card back into her purse.

Later that evening Kagome was sitting on her couch, laptop in her lap. She’d been trying to find information on the private investigator with no luck. He had no internet presence and the only listing that came up was the same information that was on the card, phone number and address. She closed her laptop, groaning in aggravation as she pulled out the extra croissant Kat had snuck into her bag earlier, biting into it. She was chewing thoughtfully when her eyes flicked to the clock on the wall, past midnight.  _ Work in the morning, I should head to bed.  _ She sighed again, popping the last bit of croissant into her mouth.

* * *

The next morning Kagome proceeded with her normal work morning routine. Sipping her Earl Grey tea at her desk she clicked to open Outlook on her computer. While it was loading, she turned to check the inbox file holder hanging on the wall of her cubby, nothing.  _ No new assignments then, that’s good, too much on my plate already.  _

When she turned back to her screen she didn't know why she was surprised to see another anonymous email. Maybe it was the fact that it had been sent one minute ago, almost like the ominous figure knew she was opening up her email. She almost didn’t want to open it, but decided to anyway, hoping this time to find a defect, find a single moment in which the person wasn’t watching her. Her jaw dropped slightly at the screen. The email contained no list, just one word. ‘Don’t’.

_ What? Don’t what? And why break the pattern, this has been going on for two weeks, why change things up now?  _ She thought about what had been different, what had changed in her life that would cause this reaction. Then it hit her, and she smacked a hand to her forehead for being so slow. She set her mug down, turning in her chair to dig into her purse. She pulled out the business card.  _ So, Mr. Ominous doesn’t want me talking with the investigator… Guess that means I should call him.  _ Kagome smirked, picking up her cell phone. 

When her finger had finished dialing the number, it hovered over the call button.  _ What if the investigator is Mr. Ominous? Then why would he slip me the card and then say not to contact him in the email. UGH!  _ She sighed, aggravated, but hit the call button anyways. 

When the call eventually went to voicemail, Kagome left a message, asking him to call her back to discuss his services. Also mentioning that she would be at Caffe Umbria around noon if he could make it there. When Kagome ended the call she glanced at the time, almost nine. That gave her three hours to get all her work done, because there was nothing that could get her to come back to work once she left. She was over this day, hell, she was over the past two weeks. 

Cracking her knuckles out before her, she set to work, fingers furiously flying over the keys. Kagome was finishing up the last of her assignments when the alarm on her phone told her that it was quarter till noon, lunch time. She sat back with a satisfied sigh, she’d finished a weeks worth of work in three hours, a seemingly impossible task for most, but not for Kagome when she set her mind to it. 

Kagome turned off her computer and stood from her chair. She stretched a bit before gathering up her belongings and heading towards her boss’s office. She explained to him that she had finished up the week’s assignments and that she was heading home early but would be back in the morning to take on some extra work. He had nodded and waved her out of his office, seeming too busy to care. 

When Kagome arrived at Caffe Umbria she spotted the silver-haired hanyou and went to sit at his table. He looked up at her with a raised brow. “Can I help you?”

Kagome was confused, “Oh, I-I’m sorry. Did you not get my message? I told you I would meet you here at noon if you could… I assumed that’s why you were here?” 

He shook his head. “I’ve been working, haven’t checked my messages. So what did you want to meet about?” He took a sip from his coffee, shutting the lid of the laptop on the table in front of him to give her his attention. 

Kagome was about to dive into her story when she hesitated. “Why did you slip your business card into my bag?”

He let out a light chuckle. “Is that what you wanted to meet with me about?”

“No. But I would like to know why you felt the need to give  _ me  _ one of your cards.” She glared at him.

He let out a sigh, rolling his golden eyes at her. He tapped the side of his nose with a finger. “I could smell it.”

“You could smell that I needed one of your cards?” She asked, unconvinced and confused.

“When you came in yesterday. You smelled...Terrified and anxious. There are several reasons that a person would be feeling each of those, but only a few would explain both. And with those reasons a person could typically use the help of someone like me. Now. Tell me your problem, and I’ll see what I can do.” He rested his arms on the table, leaning forward slightly.

Kagome groaned quietly before launching into her story, telling him everything that had happened with the anonymous emailer over the past two weeks, including the email from this morning after she had spent last night researching the investigator. She had blushed when confessing that fact to him. 

Inuyasha didn’t respond after her long winded storytelling. He grabbed his laptop from the table and slipped it into his brown messenger bag. Standing he slung the bag over his head to drape across his chest. When he picked up his coffee cup he spoke, “Are you coming?”

“Where are we going?” Kagome asked as she stood. “Does this mean you’re going to help me?”

“I’m still deciding, but I want to check out your place first.” Inuyasha turned, heading for the door, not looking back to see if she was following. When he heard her scuffling to catch up with him he spoke again. “I know you said that you checked for cameras but you don’t have my keen eyes or nose.” He smirked and they exited the shop. 

  
  
  
  



	2. Chapter 2

Inuyasha had found no traces of any cameras or listening devices in her apartment. He’d spent hours combing through her apartment. Sweeping through every nook and cranny, every outlet and light fixture with his RF detector, twice. When he’d come up empty handed he had agreed to help her, stating that he liked a challenge. 

“If you want, I can order us a late lunch... early dinner? And we can sit and discuss all the details?” Kagome offered.

Inuyasha’s eyes swept over her, his molten eyes giving away nothing. His seemingly nervous tick of running his hands through his long silver hair on the other hand made it appear that he was going to refuse. When he nodded, dropping his hand back down to his side Kagome tried to not let her surprise show. 

“Pizza ok?” When he nodded again she wandered into the kitchen, dialing the local place on her cell. She had started placing her order when she put the pizza place on hold, and poked her head around the corner. “Inuyasha, how much can you eat? Is one pizza enough for both of us?” 

He gave her a  _ look _ that said ‘Yeah, right.’ 

They sat together in her living room. Inuyasha on the comfortable gray barrel accent chair, and Kagome on the floor, tucked between the coffee table and the couch. Inuyasha had eaten two whole pizzas on his own while Kagome was on her third and final slice. When she caught Inuyasha eyeing her box that was still sitting open on the coffee table, she pushed it toward him. 

“So, what happens now? What’s your next step? What should I do? How much is this gonna cost?” Kagome ranted off the list of questions she had swimming in her head. 

He chuckled, eyeing her over the pizza he had in his mouth. “Lots of questions. Do you ever slow down?” She was barely able to make out his words as he spoke around the slice. 

Kagome shrugged at him, taking another bite. “Not if I can help it. Life’s too short, and there’s too much to do.” She spoke out the side of her mouth as she chewed. She pulled a pepperoni off and plucked it into her mouth. 

He raised a brow at her before laying out the initial pricing for his services. She nearly choked. “What?! I’m not sure I can afford you, especially if this goes on for very long.” She looked away, crinkling her nose in thought. Wondering if she could move some savings around or maybe if this was all worth it. 

_ Maybe it’s just some harmless stalker? Or a really good prank… _ She thought but knew it wasn’t true. 

“Listen.” Inuyasha began, pulling Kagome from her thoughts. “How about you can pay me half upfront and then we can work out the rest later? Who knows, if you keep buying me food like this, maybe I’ll knock off some of the cost.” He chuckled a bit. 

Kagome gave him a skeptical look. “Why would you do that? It’s not like you know me.”

He sighed. “To be honest, this is kinda weird. Somehow someone knows what you’re doing at all times, every minute of your day is documented and then sent to you. Which is either really creepy or some kind of threat. You’re right, I don’t know you but you seem like a nice enough girl and I wouldn’t want something bad to happen just because money was an issue. Besides,” he shrugged, “I like a good puzzle.”

She studied him for a moment, pondering his words.  _ Well he does seem like he genuinely does want to help, and I desperately need it… _

“Ok, you have a deal. So back to my other questions. What next? What do we do to figure out who is doing this and how?”

“Well you’re going to go to work in the morning and I’m going to follow and watch. I’ll be watching to see if I notice anyone suspicious or see if there’s any good vantage points from the buildings near here. Or by your work where someone could be watching you. It’s unlikely that anyone could watch you from a rooftop and be able to see you at all times. I mean you go to the bathroom and aren’t near any windows and yet it’s specified in the emails that you used the restroom or brushed your teeth. I guess it’s possible that they are just guessing what you’re doing in there, I mean you’re probably using the restroom everytime you go in there except the time you go before bed…” He seemed to be thinking his thoughts out loud more than talking to her. 

“Well that’s not exactly true…” Kagome stated, shaking him from his thoughts. 

“What do you mean?”

“Well in some of the emails, it’s said that I went to the bathroom and took Aleve. Or that I took my vitamins. Whoever it is knows exactly what I’m doing in there, I don’t think they are guessing.” 

“Hmmm…” He seemed to be mulling that information over. 

Kagome stood and gathered the empty pizza boxes. “Ok, so I’ll go to work tomorrow like normal and you’ll be checking things out. Do you want to meet at the coffee shop tomorrow after work and talk things over? Or do you just want to call me if you find anything?” Kagome asked, shifting nervously from foot-to-foot. She didn’t like the idea of being left in the dark until he found something. 

His amber eyes studied her, taking in her nervous behavior. “Sure, we can meet up after you’re off tomorrow.” He stood, gathering up his bag and checking to make sure he had put his equipment back inside. “Thanks for the pizza.” He made his way to the door, when his hand was on the knob he hesitated. He turned back to her. “Make sure to lock your door when I leave and just… Call me if you need anything, ok?”

Kagome smiled at his sweetness and nodded. With that he was gone. 

* * *

The next morning, Kagome sat at her computer desk, staring at her screen, there was no new email from the mysterious figure.  _ Another change in the pattern? Why? _

She shot a text off to Inuyasha letting him know that she hadn’t received an email that morning. He didn’t respond to the text but she saw that he had read the message. Sighing she set her phone down and got to work on the extra assignment she had taken this morning. 

“Kagome Higurashi?” When a man’s voice calling out her name interrupted her work, she spun her chair around, finding no one behind her. Standing she peaked over the cubicle wall, spotting a well built man, with sandy brown hair poking out from underneath a biking helmet, standing by the elevator. He was wearing a biker’s outfit, blue spandex shorts and a white top. A bulging messenger bag was slung across his chest and he had a thick manila envelope tucked under his arm. 

She waved toward him. “Over here.” 

She met him halfway between the elevator and her desk. As she was signing for her delivery she questioned him. “Who is it from?”

He shrugged. “Dunno, lady. I just deliver.”

When she was sitting back at her desk she carefully opened the mysterious package with trembling hands. She pulled out a small stack of photos that had been rubber banded together. On top was a typed note. ‘I will take one. But which? Will you contact them all to let them know they might be in danger? Looking forward to seeing how you respond to my game.’ She took off the rubber band with shaky fingers. There were at least half a dozen photos, each containing a shot taken at a distance of people in Kagome’s life. Her mother and brother, who didn’t even live in Chicago. Her best friend Sango. Several people she knew from high school. Her old college roommate. Her boss. And even Kat from the coffee shop. 

All the color drained from her face, a cold chill running through her, and she felt her stomach drop. She sat staring at the photos, her mind going a mile a minute and her heart racing. When someone’s sneeze from a nearby cubicle snapped her out of her thoughts, she shook her head, reaching for her phone. She tried several times to type out a text to Inuyasha but her fingers were not cooperating. She gave up on it and called him. 

He answered on the second ring, “Kagome?”

“Inu-Inuyasha.” Her voice was shaky and breathy. 

“Kagome, what’s wrong?” His voice was full of concern and panic, and the rush of wind coming through the phone made it sound as if he was running. 

“Please. I need you.” She wasn’t sure why she had said that exactly. She just knew she needed someone, anyone to tell her things would be ok. Support and comfort. Oddly, he was the first one she had thought of.

“I’m coming. Are you ok? Are you still at the office?”

Kagome nodded.

“Kagome? Are you there? Where are you?” His voice was firm but the panic was not completely covered by it. 

She realized she had nodded and that he couldn’t see her. She breathed out slowly. “Yes, I’m at the office.”

“I’m almost there. I’ll be up in a few minutes. Stay put.” With that he ended the connection. 

Kagome let the phone slip from her fingers and fall into her lap. She continued to stare in shock at the photos, unblinking. 

She was sitting like that when Inuyasha arrived three minutes later. Later when she asked him how he had found her desk so quickly he had flatly told her that he had sniffed her out when he had reached her floor. 

Inuyasha approached her chair, scanning the giant room for any dangers. He could smell her terror and shock. When he reached her desk he studied her face for a moment before following her eyes to her desk. When he saw the pictures he cursed quietly to himself. He gathered up the photo and the note that was tucked under them, shoving them into his bag. 

He turned back to Kagome and crouched down so he was slightly lower than her, he looked up into her face. He reached up and tucked a stray raven lock behind one ear. “Kagome?” His voice was soft and delicate. 

She didn’t respond to him. He cupped one cheek. “Kagome, you’re ok. I’m here. Let’s get out of here ok?”

She blinked a few times, before her chocolate eyes met his pools of dark amber. “Inuyasha?”

He gave her a weak smile. “Yeah. Come on, let’s get out of here.” He repeated as he stood. Reaching down to take one of her arms, helping pull her up from her chair. 

When she was standing he grabbed her coat from the back of her chair and helped her work her arms into it. He grabbed her purse from the hook nearby and tucked it into his bag. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders and taking her hand in his free one, he gently guided her from the cubicle. 

He paused briefly at a nearby cubicle and told the buzz-cut sitting there to let their boss know that Kagome was going home sick. He led her to the elevator and then out of the building. 

When they finally reached her apartment, Inuyasha had dug into her purse to find her keys and unlock the door. Only after they were inside and the door was shut and locked behind him did Kagome seem to come out of her shock. 

“Inuyasha. I don’t know what to do.”

He helped her out of her coat, hanging it on a hook near the door before leading her over to the couch to sit. He took the charcoal gray knitted throw blanket that was draped across the back of the couch and set it around her shoulders. “Are you feeling a little better now? You scared me back there.”

Kagome nodded slightly at him but supplied him with a smile. 

With that he took his messenger bag into his lap, he pulled the photos and note out before dropping the bag to the floor by his feet. He took his time reading over the note and scanning through the photos. “So who are each of these people anyways?” He asked her, handing over the photos.

She sighed, taking the photos from him. She picked out and held up three of the photos. “This is Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi. I went to high school with them but we haven’t really kept in touch.” He took them from her as she shuffled through the photos before holding up one of a red headed wolf youkai. “This is Ayame. She was my college roommate. We meet up for dinner or a girls night sometimes but she lives a few hours out of the city.”

“Do you make many friends with demons?” He looked at her quizzically. 

She shook her head, blushing slightly. “No, not really. I’ve met some but Ayame is my only actual youkai friend.” She handed him another photo. “You know Kat from the coffee shop.” Another photo. “And this one is my boss.” 

When she didn’t continue speaking, Inuyasha’s eyes moved from the photos in his hand to Kagome’s face. Her eyes were filled with tears and her gaze was glued to the last two photos. He set the photos in his hand on the coffee table before moving to rest his arm around her shoulders. “Kagome?”

“This is my family.” She pointed at one of the photos. There was a woman with short dark hair handing a brown grocery sack from the back of a mini van to a teenage boy, with similar hair color and facial structure to the woman. “They don’t even live anywhere near Chicago which is probably the most scary part, that whoever this is has others watching in other cities. Or they travelled there and then came back? I dunno.” Kagome wiped at the tears on her cheeks. “This last one is my best friend Sango. She lives in the city but she’s a jujutsu trainer so I don’t think she would really be the target, but if she is, I feel bad for the other guys… Kinda.”

Inuyasha chuckled at that. “You might be right. But what do you want to do? Do you want to call them all and let them know or…? It’s really up to you.”

She dropped the photos in her lap before bringing her hands up to rest her face in them. “I have no idea. I don’t know what to do. Can we go to the police?” Her voice was muffled coming through the cracks in her fingers but he understood her well enough. 

“You could but honestly I don’t think the police could really do much. There’s not a lot to go on. And there would be only so much they could do, especially with your friends and family outside of Chicago.” 

She shook her head in her hands. “This is too overwhelming. I don’t know what to do, I can hardly think.”

“I understand, this is all crazy.”

“Can you…” She dropped her hands, but didn’t look up at him. “Do you think you could stay over tonight? I just don’t think I can be alone. It freaked me out enough being here alone during all those emails, but now this.” She sighed, trying to hold in a sob.

Inuyasha hesitated, tensing slightly. “I-”

“Nevermind. It was stupid of me to ask. I mean we don’t even know each other. I’ll be ok. Thank you for helping me home from work.”

“Kagome. I’ll stay.”


	3. Chapter 3

The silence between them lasted a good part of the day, Kagome was surprised at how unawkward it seemed to be. It was just a comfortable silence, both of them working on their own things, sitting on the couch, laptops on their laps and the tv on quietly in the background. But when she heard Inuyasha’s stomach growl she turned to him. “How long have you been hungry and not saying anything?” She questioned. 

He shrugged, not looking away from the email he was furiously typing. “Not that long. Few hours maybe. I figured you’d mention it when you were hungry.”

She uncrossed her legs and leaned forward to set her laptop on the coffee table. She patted him on the thigh as she stood and made her way to the kitchen. Glancing through the cupboards and the fridge she groaned. Thanks to all the craziness going on she had yet to take her normal trip to the grocery. Taking a bag of chips from the basket on her counter, she poured them into a bowl. She snagged two bottles of water from the fridge and made her way back to the living room. She set the waters on the table and set the bowl on the couch next to Inuyasha. He immediately grabbed a few and began munching down, eyes still glued to his screen.

“I’ll have to order some food, I’m pretty low on groceries at the moment.”

“That’s fine, whatever you want to order is ok with me.”

She shook her head at him with a smile before opening up her phone to place a huge chinese order. Being unsure what Inuyasha liked and knowing how much he could eat, she ended up ordering almost one of everything from the menu. She turned to look at him again, the bowl of chips almost gone and his eyes still on his computer.

She opened up another app on her phone, typing into it before speaking. “Hey, where’s your phone?”

“In my pocket.” He shoved another chip into his mouth. 

She rolled her eyes at him before tapping her phone to the bulge in his pocket, a small chime followed. Setting her phone back on the table, she picked her laptop back up. 

“What was that?” He asked, and when she turned to look at him, his eyes were finally off the screen. 

“My savings, half of what I owe you, as agreed.” She turned back to her laptop. 

When the bags and bags of food arrived at her door, Inuyasha finally put his laptop away, eyes wide and eager as she began unloading everything onto the coffee table. 

“What were you working on so intently anyways?” Kagome asked as she handed over a pair of chopsticks to him. 

“Finishing up my other job so I can focus on this one.” He cracked open the lid to the general tso’s. 

“Oh.” She looked away, feeling slightly guilty that he was helping her, even if she was paying him. 

She searched for something to watch on tv before sighing and putting on one of the few movies that was playing, _Moulin Rouge._ “Prepare for tears.” She told him, taking a bite of moo shu pork. 

He raised a brow at her. “Tears? Why?” He spoke around his bite full of spiced meat. 

“Why? Haven’t you seen this?” He shook his head. “Totally sad at the end. Tragic really.” She shook her head, taking another bite. 

By the end of the movie, Kagome was curled up on the couch with a handful of tissues. She glanced over at Inuyasha who was giving her an _odd_ look. “What?” She croaked. “Don’t judge me.” 

He gave her a sad smile before scooting over on the couch and wrapping an arm around her. She bit her lip to try to stop it’s quivering before she laid her head on his chest. Her heart fluttered at the contact and her heart swelled at the gesture.

The movie ended and the next one began playing but Kagome didn’t notice. She was already dozing off, leaning against Inuyasha. He scooped her up and carried her to her bed.

“Thank you.” She mumbled sleepily as he pulled the covers up over her. 

* * *

“Kagome! Kagome! Wake up!” Inuyasha’s voice penetrated through her dream. He shook her again. “Kagome, come on.” His voice was urgent and panicked. 

She blinked her eyes open, glaring at him. “What’s wro-” The sound of the building's fire alarm was going. She jerked up from her bed. “There’s a fire?!”

“Yes. Come on, throw on a sweater and put your shoes on.”

Kagome lept from her bed, grabbing a hoodie off her ottoman and yanking it over her head.

“Kagome, it’s going to sound weird, but I need you to pack some things. I don’t think the fire is an accident and we probably won’t be able to come here for a while. Just grab a bag and throw some clothes and some essentials in it.” 

“Inuyasha! The building is on fire.” She hissed at him. 

“I _know._ Look I can smell the fire, we have a little time. Just grab some stuff or you’ll be stuck wearing those pjs for a few days.”

Sighing, exasperated, she got on her knees to grab her duffel bag out from under her bed. She threw the bag onto her bed before running over to her dresser and grabbing everything she could, tossing handfuls of underwear and socks over to the bed, followed by leggings, jeans and tank tops. She ran over to her closet and grabbed shirts off hangers and a few sweaters. Going back over to the bag, she started stuffing all the items inside. 

“Inuyasha, can you grab my jacket off the hook and my shoes from beside the door?” 

“Got ‘em already.” She turned to see him standing in her doorway, fully dressed, coat and shoes on, his bag slung over his shoulder and her jacket and shoes in hand. 

She zipped up her bag and took her shoes from him, quickly shoving her feet inside. She took her jacket from him and tried to pull it on over her hoodie but it was too tight of a fit. She unzipped her bag again and shoved her jacket inside. Slinging the bag over her shoulder she realized she had packed too much. 

_Almost like I was rushed in the middle of the night with the building on fire to pack a bag._ Her heart was pounding and she was beginning to shake from the overwhelming panic of the situation. 

Inuyasha grabbed her hand and led her to the door. He paused, sniffing the air. “Fuck.” He muttered before cracking the door open and slamming it closed again. “Fire is blocking the stairs. Fire escape?”

Kagome nodded, leading him over to a window that led out to the fire escape. He thrust the window open and climbed out before turning back to her to take her bag from her as she climbed out behind him. He handed the bag back to her and as she was adjusting it back onto her shoulder he spoke. 

“What the fuck?! Where are the stairs?”

Kagome looked at what he was talking about, the stairs that normally lead down to the ground from her floor were gone. Not that the stairs were broken, but that every other landing on the floors below hers were simply not there. 

“What the… There are supposed to be stairs there, there has always been stairs there!” Kagome cried in a panic. 

“Fine, go up.” He motioned for her to head up the steps, towards the roof. 

Kagome quickly started taking the stairs, moving as quickly as her legs would allow, she could tell she wasn’t moving fast enough for Inuyasha as he was right on her tail. “You know, if you want to go in front of me, that’s ok.” She said through her pants. 

“No, keep going.” He said sternly.

When they finally reached the roof, she bent over, gasping a bit for breath. _I really should get off the computer and work out sometime._

Inuyasha went to the edge of the building, circling all around the roof, looking down. 

“What are you looking for?” She asked, watching him.

“A safe place to reach or jump to.” He muttered, and she hardly caught the words as she followed him in his circling. 

“Isn’t it a little high for you to jump to the ground?”

“Yes, it’s way too high, I’m looking to see if there is another place to jump to, or else we are trapped up here on this roof.”

There was a loud booming sound below them, and the feeling of the building shaking rattled through them. Kagome’s stomach dropped and the blood ran from her face. 

“Put the bag on your back and climb on.” Inuyasha said as he knelt, presenting his back to her. 

She moved the bag strap over her neck and swung the bag to her back. Putting her hands on his shoulders, she felt a tingle go up her arms and hesitated. “I don’t think I can do this.”

He turned his head slightly to her before one of his hands was gently resting on hers. “Kagome. Look at me.” She turned her chocolate eyes to meet his golden honey ones, she bit her lip in nervousness. “It’ll be ok, just trust me.” 

She stared into his eyes for a moment, contemplating. She closed her eyes before moving to climb onto his back. She buried her face into his neck as he stood, his hands coming around to hook under her legs. When the building began to shake again, he took off at a sprint. He hopped up to the lip of the roof, before pushing off and jumping into the air. 


	4. Chapter 4

Kagome’s stomach dropped as she felt only air around them, her legs squeezing tighter around Inuyasha. She hadn’t realized she was screaming until she saw Inuyasha’s ears pin down to his head and heard her name piercing through the wind. Kagome saw the building they were heading for, just moments before they missed it, the ledge just a little too far up. The rough brick dug and tore at Kagome’s knees as they slammed against the side of the building, she let out a cry of pain, burying her face back into Inuyasha’s neck as a few unwanted tears rolled down her cheeks. 

“Shit.” Inuyasha’s claws scraped against the side of the building, trying to slow their fall.

When they suddenly jerked to a stop, Kagome opened her eyes. Inuyasha had managed to snag hold of a window ledge. “Kagome. I need you to let go.”

“What?!” She squealed. 

“There’s a balcony below us. You’ll be ok. Just drop down. I can’t hop down with you on my back, it’s a bad angle, I might hurt you.”

“I can’t.” She buried her face back into his neck, more tears coming. 

“Kagome, listen to me. You’ll be ok. Just trust me. Let go.”

Her heart pounded in her chest and her hands trembled even as they were clutching to Inuyasha for dear life. She knew that if she tried to pump herself up to let go, that she would completely chicken out and would never be able to do it. Releasing her hold on him, she let out a small scream that only lasted for a few moments before she landed on her back. Her bag had cushioned her landing onto the hard concrete of the balcony. 

Inuyasha dropped down beside Kagome, bending down to help her stand. Kagome held onto his arm for balance as they turned to look back at her apartment building. Black smoke poured from several floors, and there was another small explosion inside. One corner of the building began crumbling off, bricks and debris smashing to the sidewalk below. 

Kagome gaped at the building; her home, her _ life _ was gone. Everything she owned was in there, her laptop, all her pictures. When she felt Inuyasha’s arm wrap around her shoulders she felt the urge to cry, but the tears wouldn’t come. 

_ Maybe… maybe this is what shock feels like? Is it shock if you know that it is? What am I supposed to do now? Was it an accident or was I the target? Kagome, you’re an idiot, not everything is necessarily about you. It’s just bad timing, that’s all. Just a coincidence. _

“Kagome.” Inuyasha spoke quietly to her. “I’m sorry.” They stood in silence for another minute before he spoke again. “We should go, Kagome.”

“Where?” She whispered. “My home is gone.”

“You can stay at my place if you want. If you don’t want to, that’s ok, we can find you a hotel.”

“Ok. Just for tonight, I’ll figure out what to do in the morning.” With that he turned her and guided her over to the fire escape.

* * *

Kagome wasn’t sure at what point of her wobbly walking down the sidewalk that he decided to have her climb on his back and carry her but she knew it couldn’t have been long after they left. She remembered her face lying on his shoulder as her arms dangled loosely around his neck, her gaze blank and unseeing as she stared at the passing surroundings. 

She had no idea how much time had passed or why he hadn’t taken a bus. She remembered him climbing a small set of stairs before reaching into his pocket to pull out a small set of keys and unlocking a door. She recalled being slid off his back and landing on a comfortable mattress before her bag was removed from her back and set on the floor near the nightstand. He’d pulled off her shoes and gently laid her back onto a soft pillow. When he had pulled an emerald comforter up over her she briefly recalled thinking that the pillow smelled just like Inuyasha before she was overcome with exhaustion. 

* * *

Kagome woke with a start, jolting up into a sitting position, slightly panicked about where she was. Her heart hammering in her ears and her head spinning, the recollection of the night's events slowly began to come back to her. She took a slow, deep breath, raising a hand to her chest. She finally began to relax slightly and her heart began to slow. She took a moment to glance around the room, trying to take in what she assumed was Inuyasha’s bedroom. The room seemed to lack many furnishings other than the bed and the one nightstand, she spotted what she thought to be a closet and two open doors, both of which flooded light into the room. 

As she made a move to climb out of the bed, she spotted a glass of water and two aspirin on the nightstand. With a small grateful smile, Kagome tossed the pills into her mouth and washed them down with a gulp from the glass. 

The clock resting on the nightstand caught her eye and she groaned. Three in the morning was way too early. Rising from the bed, Kagome made her way over to the first open door. Peeking in she found that it was the bathroom. After using the toilet she found herself studying her image in the mirror as she washed her hands. 

_ Ugh, Kagome, you look like crap.  _

Her hair was totally disheveled, her eyes were red rimmed with deep bags underneath and a small smudge of dirt adorned one cheek. Huffing and shaking her head at herself she turned and glanced at the shower. 

Decision made, she went and retrieved her bag from the bedroom floor before making her way back to the bathroom. Shutting the door behind her she set her bag on the sink. After turning the knobs in the shower as hot as she dared, she began to strip. 

She cringed back slightly at the heat from the water before plunging into the water. She began to relax after a few minutes, the scalding water soothing the aching muscles in her back. When she turned to face the water she hissed and jumped back from it. Glancing down at her legs she saw the skin of her knees was torn and there was dried blood surrounding the scrapes. Carefully lifting one leg into the water at a time, she lightly rubbed the blood from each one before inspecting them again.

_ Not too bad, just some surface damage.  _

Sighing from her lack of her own products she set to work scrubbing her hair and body clean using the bottles Inuyasha had. 

Feeling a bit more awake and refreshed, Kagome turned off the water and began wringing the water from her hair. Reaching out of the shower she grabbed a towel from the hook, giving it a quick sniff and deciding it smelled clean enough she set to drying off before wrapping her hair up in the towel and throwing it up onto her head. 

Pulling black leggings and a navy tank top from her bag she dressed quickly. She eyed the toothbrush on the counter, with a glance at the door, another decision made, she grabbed the toothbrush. Teeth cleaned, she dug for her brush at the bottom of her bag before pulling the towel free from her head and set to work on the knots. A good five minutes later the brush finally managed to pass through her hair without snagging. She toweled the ends of her hair again before setting deft fingers into motion and soon had a neat plait down her back. Securing the end with her only hair tie she looked at her reflection again. 

_ Better. Though those bags look awful; could use some more sleep.  _

Stuffing her dirty clothes back into her bag along with her brush, she hung the towel back on the rack before exiting the bathroom. Tossing her bag onto the bed she looked at the time. 

_ Still too early. Wonder where Inuyasha is… _

Kagome quietly made her way to the other open door, bare feet not making any noise on the hardwood floors. She peered down the hallway, a small light coming from a room at the end. She made her way towards the light. A small lamp lit a decent sized living room. A well worn cozy looking workplace sat in the corner. A desk littered with books, papers and notebooks strewn around a closed laptop. Next to the desk was a tall bookshelf, half filled with law books and property maps. Notebooks and extra boxes of pens also rested there. Kagome made her way over to the shelf when she noticed a few pictures on a higher shelf. 

They were hard to make out from her low angle and the dim light but they seemed to be of an older woman, beautiful with long black hair. One of the images of the woman there was a small boy in her arms, resting against one hip, silver hair flowing over his shoulders. 

_ Must be Inuyasha and his mother? _

A small noise behind her startled her and she spun quickly. Inuyasha lay on the couch, back to her, breathing seemingly steady. 

_ I didn’t even notice him sleeping there. He must’ve been turning in his sleep. _

There was a large coffee table in front of the couch and a matching loveseat on the other side. The room was fairly sparse and no tv.

_ Just like the bedroom.  _

From her spot she could see the entrance to the kitchen on the other side of the living room. Grabbing a notebook from the shelf she flipped through it. Finding it empty, she grabbed a pen from the desk and made her way back to the bedroom. 

After an hour of trying and failing to write a letter to her mother, Kagome’s growling stomach was too much to continue ignoring. With an annoyed sigh, she set the notebook and pen on the nightstand and made her way to the kitchen. With a quick peek at the couch, she saw Inuyasha was still sleeping. Pulling open the fridge, Kagome was met with a surprise. The fridge was filled with food, fresh produce, packages of meat and cheese, bottles of water and several juices. 

_ Wow, he must cook a lot for himself. _

After glancing through the cabinets and checking for different ingredients she decided to make bacon and pancakes. After the bacon was sizzling on the griddle, she set to work on making the pancake batter. When it was ready, she set the pan on the stovetop to start heating. Finally finding the coffee in one of the taller cabinets, she got a pot brewing. Pulling another bowl from the cabinet, she separated the batter between the two. Washing a few handfuls of blueberries in the sink, she added them to one of the batters. With the pan heated, Kagome took turns between adding dolips of batter to the pan and checking on the bacon. 

It was when Kagome was turning the bacon for the final time that she jumped, noticing Inuyasha leaning against the kitchen doorway, arms crossed over his chest. 

“Find everything ok?” He asked, voice still thick with sleep. 

“Oh. Yeah, I’m sorry. I should’ve asked. It’s just you were sleeping, and well I thought you might be hungry. And I shouldn’t have just helped myself, I’m sorry if I overstepped. I-”

He cut off her rambling with a wave of his hand and a light chuckle. “No, it’s fine. I don’t mind at all. I’m surprised you're up this early, you should still be sleeping.” He made his way over to the coffee maker, pulling a mug from a shelf and pouring himself some before turning back to her, leaning back against the counter.

“Yeah. I, um… Couldn’t sleep. Woke up a few hours ago.” She cleared her throat before turning back to the pan and flipping the pancakes. “I uh, didn’t know how you liked your pancakes, so I only made half with blueberries, cause that’s how I like them, but there are plenty without.”

“Smells good. Dunno how I slept through it.”

Kagome shrugged, pulling a plate from the cupboard nearby and began shoveling the bacon onto it. “It was a pretty adventurous night, I’m guessing you really needed the sleep. Hope you don’t mind, but I helped myself to a shower too.” She gave him a small smile over her shoulder. 

“A shower does sound like a good idea, think I’ll go take one myself.” He set his mug down on the countertop before pointing at a cabinet. “There’s some syrup in there. I’ll just be a few minutes.” With that he left her to finish scraping the rest of the batter into the pan. 

She put a few pancakes on her plate alongside her bacon before flipping the last pancake in the pan and pulling another plate from the cupboard for Inuyasha. Turning off the heat on the stovetop, she retrieved the syrup and carried it and her plate into the living room. She had just taken her first bite of pancake when Inuyasha came strolling by and into the kitchen, clean black t-shirt on and a pair of grey sweats, hanging low on his hips. His damp hair was pulled up into a loose bun at the nape of his neck. Kagome found it hard to swallow her pancakes down her now dry throat. 

_ Man, he’s sexy. If only those pants were a bit lower… Kagome! Get your head back on straight. He’s working for you, helping you with this shitty situation, you can’t be having thoughts like that! Thoughts like that will lead down a very dangerous path.  _

She cleared her throat before taking a large gulp of coffee from her mug. Inuyasha came back into the room, a plate piled high with food in one hand, his coffee in the other. Taking a place beside her on the couch, he set down the plate onto the table. Taking a drink from his cup before speaking. 

“So, what are your plans for today?”

She swallowed the bit of bacon she had in her mouth. “Oh, ummm. Well I should probably call the landlord, let him know that I’m alive. I think it would probably be best if I say that I heard about the accident and that I had been staying at a friend’s house rather than trying to explain how I woke up to the fire and managed to escape. Just seems simpler.” She took another drink from her mug. “I have a few letters I’d like to get written and then I dunno after that. Might call work and see about taking a little mini vacation till we can get some of this sorted out. I’ll just tell my boss about the fire at the apartment and tell him I need to deal with all that nonsense.”

Inuyasha nodded, drizzling syrup onto his plate. “Seems like a good place to start. I’ll start doing some deeper digging today, see if one of my contacts can help me get access to some of the cameras around the city. Dunno how much that’ll help with how many people are around all the time, but hopefully I can find something to go off of.” 

Kagome found herself studying him out of the corner of her eye while they ate in silence. 

_ Well things could be worse. He could be a jerk. Or a lot less easy on the eyes.  _

  
  



End file.
